Special Guests: Dr Richard Klopp

“Fighting poverty and equality in a globalized world”, was the issue tackled by the ECOSOC committee on Friday. We had the honour to welcome our special guest Dr Richard Klopp, principal at AVENIR, Consulting managing Director at BRCK.org, and CEO of Water for Good. Furthermore, Dr Klopp has worked with many UN organisations such as UNICEF.

In his talk, he started by explaining his mission in the Central African Republic a very unstable country located in the heart of Africa. He then enlightened us on the difference between Humanitarian and Development Aid, Humanitarian Aid is an immediate Aid designated to save lives, mostly after a disaster, they operate in emergency situation. Finally Dr Klopp made the ECOSOC delegates guess facts concerning water and its accessibility in the world.

Water is vital to life, and having access to it should not be a privilege. 1 in every 10 people in the world lacks access to clean water; that is 783 million people. However, this problem can also affect first world countries, as some people in California don’t have access to clean water.

Water For Good is a non profit organisation whose goal is to provide access to proper water in the Central African Republic, they declare that having access to clean water is the first step out of extreme poverty. Indeed, many diseases are transmitted through water. Fetching water actually stops young girls from going to school because fetching it is traditionally a woman’s job. The singularity of Water For Good is that they are a development Aid which means that it is a long-term process, they have been collaborating with the local population since 2010. Water for Good works with the locals who they have trained, in order to find solutions concerning economic development. Water for Good does not only focus on the capital Bangui, but they also operate in villages and other smaller towns like Berberati a town west of the capital, or Boali a tourist destination known for its waterfalls. Providing water to such areas is not a simple task, because the pumps break within a few years. This organisation does not focus only on water, they also provide training in sanitation and are involved in the agricultural improvements of certain villages.

Dr Klopp implemented the first successful drilling business in the CAR located in Berberati, which has allowed hundreds of people to access safe water.